Editing Evil (section)

===Abrahamic===
====Baháʼí Faith====
The [[Baháʼí Faith]] asserts that evil is non-existent and that it is a concept reflecting lack of good, just as cold is the state of no heat, darkness is the state of no light, forgetfulness the lacking of memory, ignorance the lacking of knowledge. All of these are states of lacking and have no real existence.<ref name="Coll. 1982">{{cite book|last=Coll |first='Abdu'l-Bahá |title=Some answered questions|year=1982|publisher=Baháʼí Publ. Trust|location=Wilmette, IL |isbn=978-0-87743-162-6 |edition=Repr. |translator=Barney, Laura Clifford}}</ref>

Thus, evil does not exist and is relative to man. [[ʻAbdu'l-Bahá]], son of the founder of the religion, in [[Some Answered Questions]] states:<ref name="Coll. 1982" /><blockquote>Nevertheless a doubt occurs to the mind—that is, scorpions and serpents are poisonous. Are they good or evil, for they are existing beings? Yes, a scorpion is evil in relation to man; a serpent is evil in relation to man; but in relation to themselves they are not evil, for their poison is their weapon, and by their sting they defend themselves.</blockquote>Thus, evil is more of an intellectual concept than a true reality. Since God is good, and upon creating creation he confirmed it by saying it is Good (Genesis 1:31) evil cannot have a true reality.<ref name="Coll. 1982"/>

====Christianity====
{{see also|Devil#Christianity|label 1=Devil in Christianity}}

[[File:Ary Scheffer - The Temptation of Christ (1854).jpg|thumb|left|upright|The [[devil]], in opposition to the will of God, represents evil and tempts Christ, the personification of the character and will of God. [[Ary Scheffer]], 1854.]]

[[Christian theology]] draws its concept of evil from the [[Old Testament|Old]] and [[New Testament]]s. The [[Christian Bible]] exercises "the dominant influence upon ideas about God and evil in the Western world."<ref name="David Ray Griffin 2004"/> In the Old Testament, evil is understood to be an opposition to God as well as something unsuitable or inferior such as the leader of the [[fallen angel]]s [[Satan#Christianity|Satan]].<ref>Hans Schwarz, ''Evil: A Historical and Theological Perspective'' (Lima, Ohio: Academic Renewal Press, 2001): 42–43.</ref> In the New Testament the [[Greek language|Greek]] word ''poneros'' is used to indicate unsuitability, while ''kakos'' is used to refer to opposition to God in the human realm.<ref>Schwarz, ''Evil'', 75.</ref> Officially, the Catholic Church extracts its understanding of evil from its canonical antiquity and the [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] [[theologian]], [[Thomas Aquinas]], who in ''Summa Theologica'' defines evil as the absence or privation of good.<ref>Thomas Aquinas, ''Summa Theologica'', translated by the Fathers of the English Dominican Province (New York: Benziger Brothers, 1947) Volume 3, q. 72, a. 1, p. 902.</ref> [[French-American]] theologian [[Henri Blocher]] describes evil, when viewed as a theological concept, as an "unjustifiable reality. In common parlance, evil is 'something' that occurs in the experience that ''ought not to be''."<ref>Henri Blocher, ''Evil and the Cross'' (Downers Grove: [[InterVarsity Press]], 1994): 10.</ref>

====Islam====
{{see also|Islamic views on sin}}
There is no concept of absolute evil in [[Islam]], as a fundamental universal principle that is independent from and equal with good in a dualistic sense.<ref name="ReferenceA">Jane Dammen McAuliffe ''Encyclopaedia of the Qurʼān'' Brill 2001 {{ISBN|978-90-04-14764-5}} p. 335</ref> Although the Quran mentions the [[biblical]] forbidden tree, it never refers to it as the '[[tree of knowledge of good and evil]]'.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Within Islam, it is considered essential to believe that all comes from [[God in Islam|God]], whether it is perceived as good or bad by individuals; and things that are perceived as ''evil'' or ''bad'' are either natural events (natural disasters or illnesses) or caused by humanity's free will. Much more the behavior of beings with free will, then they disobey God's orders, harming others or putting themselves over God or others, is considered to be evil.<ref>B. Silverstein ''Islam and Modernity in Turkey'' Springer 2011 {{ISBN|978-0-230-11703-7}} p. 124</ref> Evil does not necessarily refer to evil as an ontological or moral category, but often to harm or as the intention and consequence of an action, but also to unlawful actions.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
Unproductive actions or those who do not produce benefits are also thought of as evil.<ref>Jane Dammen McAuliffe ''Encyclopaedia of the Qurʼān'' Brill 2001 {{ISBN|978-90-04-14764-5}} p. 338</ref>

A typical understanding of evil is reflected by [[Al-Ash`ari]] founder of [[Ashʿari|Asharism]]. Accordingly, qualifying something as evil depends on the circumstances of the observer. An event or an action itself is neutral, but it receives its qualification by God. Since God is omnipotent and nothing can exist outside of God's power, God's will determine, whether or not something is evil.<ref>P. Koslowski (2013). ''The Origin and the Overcoming of Evil and Suffering in the World Religions'' Springer Science & Business Media {{ISBN|978-94-015-9789-0}} p. 37</ref>

====Rabbinic Judaism====
{{see also|Satan#Judaism|label 1=Satan in Judaism}}
In [[Judaism]] and Jewish theology, the existence of evil is presented as part of the idea of [[Free will in theology|free will]]: if humans were created to be perfect, always and only doing good, being good would not mean much. For Jewish theology, it is important for humans to have the ability to choose the path of goodness, even in the face of temptation and ''[[yetzer hara]]'' (the inclination to do evil).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gurkow |first=Lazer |title=Why Did G-d Create Evil? |url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/367866/jewish/Why-Did-G-d-Create-Evil.htm |access-date=October 17, 2023 |website=Chabad}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=rabbifisdel |date=2010-07-08 |title=The Human Dichotomy: Good and Evil {{!}} Classical Kabbalist |url=https://classicalkabbalist.org/blog/?p=7 |access-date=2023-10-18 |language=en-US}}</ref>